CPAC: Donald Trump and Nikki Haley will be there; Ron DeSantis and Mike Pence won't

WASHINGTON – The annual conservative activist confab known as CPAC – the Conservative Political Action Conference – takes place this week and features a list of prospective Republican presidential candidates.

A relatively short list.

Former President Donald Trump and Nikki Haley, so far his only announced big-name Republican challenger, are scheduled to address CPAC delegates, but potential contenders like Ron DeSantis and Mike Pence are skipping the high-profile conference this weekend at National Harbor, Maryland.

They and others will attend a closed-door donor conference in Florida while Trump works the CPAC crowd.

"We're going to be talking about very serious subjects, but we'll have some fun doing it," Trump said in a CPAC-sponsored video promoting the conference.

Among the CPAC topics:

The Trump show

Though CPAC was initially cool to the businessman-turned-politician – he finished third in the conference's presidential straw poll in 2016 – the gathering became increasingly pro-Trump during his presidency and afterward.

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Now a CPAC fixture, Trump will again close the conference with a speech on Saturday.

After announcing his 2024 candidacy in November, Trump is expected to solicit continued support from CPAC. The only question is what, if anything, Trump says about rivals like DeSantis, Pence and Haley.

With some conservatives questioning the value of CPAC at this point, Trump senior adviser Jason Miller said the "mainstream media" is attacking the conference because Trump "is going to have a dominant presence there." He said some want to distract from the fact that Trump "is the leader of the conservative movement, the Republican Party and 2024 polling."

The Haley effect: What will she say about Donald Trump?

CPAC watchers will also look to see what Haley says about Trump in her speech Friday.

Since announcing her candidacy in mid-February, the former South Carolina governor and Trump-appointed United Nations ambassador has promoted herself as the leader of a "new generation" – mostly a dig at 80-year-old President Joe Biden but one that conveniently applies to the 76-year-old Trump.

This is first time Trump and a Republican primary opponent will be appearing at the same event.

CPAC delegates will also hear from former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who is considering a 2024 presidential bid.

DeSantis, Pence at competing Florida event

DeSantis, the Florida governor who polls the best among non-Trump candidates, will be at another event.

The Club for Growth, a conservative organization that specializes in economic issues, is holding a closed-door retreat for donors who will hear from a number of Republican presidential possibilities.

Pence is expected to be there, according to a Club For Growth schedule, as is Haley. Other possible presidential candidates attending the retreat include Tim Scott, Ted Cruz, Rick Scott, Chris Sununu, and Vivek Ramaswamy. (Cruz, Ramaswamy and Rick Scott also are scheduled to speak at CPAC.)

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The Club for Growth event is being held in Palm Beach, Florida, but local resident Trump will not be there. He has clashed with the organization over past presidential endorsements, and he said Tuesday that the "Club for NO Growth is an insignificant group of Globalists" who will get only the "stragglers" in the 2024 GOP presidential contest.

Marjorie Taylor Greene, Jim Jordan among GOP lawmakers at CPAC

After two years of events in Florida and Texas, the Conservative Political Action Conference returns to the Washington, D.C., area. That makes it easier for Republican members of Congress to attend.

This year's schedule includes Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., who has called for a national "divorce" between red states and blue states.

Also on the CPAC agenda is Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, who as chairman of the House Judiciary Committee is conducting a number of investigations into the Biden administration.

Election deniers among the speakers

Election denial is also a big topic at CPAC, Many delegates and speakers continue to protest Trump's 2020 loss to Biden, despite a lack of evidence of widespread voter fraud.

Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election are also the focus of multiple criminal investigations.

The CPAC agenda has an international flavor. One of the speakers is former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, whose supporters stormed government buildings to protest his loss in that country's president election last year, reminiscent of the pro-Trump insurrection of Jan. 6, 2021.

Also speaking at CPAC: Kari Lake, who is still protesting her loss in the 2022 Arizona governor's race.

CPAC troubles?

This year's conference takes place amid trouble surrounding top organizer Matt Schlapp.

An anonymous male aide with Herschel Walker's Senate campaign in 2022 has filed a lawsuit accusing Schlapp of an unwanted sexual advance.

Schlapp has vigorously denied the claim and said he is the target of a smear campaign.

On his Twitter feed Tuesday, Schlapp said his organization is "thriving," and he added: "Join us in D.C. for the greatest #CPAC experience in history."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Republicans Trump, Haley to attend CPAC; Pence, DeSantis will skip